Check out the new solo single from Jay Buchanan, frontman of Rival Sons. His song ‘Caroline’ is a powerful reflection on loss, return and forgiveness. Brilliantly performed, the highlight is Buchanan’s characterful, expressive vocal delivery. Towards the end of the song, his voice rises in a tremendous, emotional, epic finale. Buchanan shares of the song: “I suppose that writing about unquenchable grief allows you a kind of permission to pay respect to those deep chasms in your life without wallowing in them. Putting it in a song lets you buy the ticket and take the ride — and then move on.”
Of the video, which was filmed in gold mines in Mojave Desert, Buchanan says: “I can see a parallel here. Spending twelve hours deep in the earth, trying to mine our own treasure, knowing full well so many have perished in those same caves chasing a future cut dangerously short. That’s a hell of a way to spend a Sunday!” It’s an atmospheric visual, with Buchanan’s way through the darkness lit by matches while a series of memories are projected onto the cave wall.
The single is from “Weapons of Beauty“, Buchanan’s debut solo album, which will be released on 6th February 2026. To prepare for the album, he disappeared into the Mojave Desert for three months, writing alone by firelight in an underground bunker by the abandoned gold mines. “The silence was both terrifying and liberating. A caterpillar knows when it’s time to get into the cocoon.” Fittingly, songs of loss and endurance emerged.
Buchanan says of the album: “As music continues to be choked out by technology, I wanted to draw pictures in the dirt. This approach is right with me, and I’ve just come to a point where there is no longer a choice. ‘Weapons Of Beauty’ is the sound of these plates shifting within me, too loud to ignore. Surprisingly, I’ve never known a vulnerability to feel so empowering.”
One of Buchanan’s most recent projects was performing as frontman of the Stone Pony house band in the Bruce Springsteen biopic ‘Deliver Me From Nowhere’. He explains what the experience was like: “More than anything, it was just a really good hang. I played a band leader, so no acting there. Being on stage together playing music was about bringing Jeremy (Allen White) into my world, and being on camera in a film was about him bringing me into his. It was amazing. Jeremy and Scott (Cooper) made me feel like I belonged there — and that was just what I needed.”
If the rest of the album is as good as this taster, 2026 is looking very bright indeed!